This invention relates to a steel cord used as a reinforcing material for elastomeric body such as automobile tires or conveyer belts.
As the conventional reinforcing material for the above-mentioned application, there are a strand type cord (see FIG. 2) prepared by twisting together a plurality of hard steel wires and a wire rope type cord (see FIG. 3) prepared by twisting together a plurality of said strands. Particularly in the case where high elongation is demanded of the steel cord, there is in use a steel cord wherein the respective lay lengths of the strand and the wire rope composed of the strands are short and the lay of the strand in the wire rope and the lay of the wire rope are of the same direction. The steel cord short in said lay lengths indeed has higher flexibility and higher elongation than the steel cord long in said lay lengths, but is decreased in breaking load. Accordingly, where wires having the same mechanical strength are used, a steel cord composed of the wires having a shorter lay length had the drawback of being more prominently decreased in breaking strength than a steel cord composed of the wires having a longer lay length.